Avoiding Plagiarism
Quickwrite
• Come up with a clear thesis statement that
answers this question, and then begin to
answer it in the form of a freewrite.
• What do you think are the most common
reasons that some students plagiarize (cheat,
steal others’ words or ideas) on their written
assignments? What do you think should be
done in order to address these reasons and
prevent plagiarism from occurring?
Three Basic Rules for Avoiding
Plagiarism:
1. Make sure all word-for-word quotes have quote
marks showing where they begin and end. Also,
make sure to make the difference between your
ideas and your sources’ ideas clear when
paraphrasing or summarizing.
2. Identify where each quote OR paraphrased idea
came from in the body of your paper using intext citations.
3. Make sure that each source you quote or
paraphrase in your paper is correctly listed on
your Works Cited page.
To Cite, or Not to Cite
• You do not have to cite facts that are undisputed
common knowledge.
– Ex: The Battle of Gettysburg began on July 1, 1863.
– Ex: Water is made up of two hydrogen atoms and one
oxygen atom.
– Ex: Dublin is the capital of the Republic of Ireland.
• However, once you start needing to use ideas
about these common, everyday facts that you
found in your sources, you must cite the source
of the idea.
• When in doubt, cite! And if you have time, ask!
Some Myths about Plagiarism
• Myth 1: As long as I have a source on my works cited page, I
don’t have to mention it in the body of my paper.
• WRONG! Any time you use ideas or words from a source, you
must include an in-text citation.
• Myth 2: As long as I change one or two words in a quote, I
don’t have to put quote marks around it or do a citation.
• WRONG! Changing one or two words in a quote and replacing
them with synonyms is STILL PLAGIARISM if you keep the
original ideas and/or sentence structure.
• Myth 3: As long as I paraphrase correctly, using my own words
and sentence structure to express an idea, I don’t need an intext citation.
• WRONG! Even if you use your own words, if the idea originally
came from somewhere else, you must cite it.
Myths about Plagiarism
• Myth 4: I don’t need to cite exact words, ideas or
information I find on the internet.
• WRONG! Treat your internet sources with the same
respect you have for your print or online database
sources.
• Myth 5: It is appropriate to use an old essay from a friend,
buy an essay, or have someone help me write an essay
using his or her wording instead of mine.
• WRONG! All of these are called collusion, and they are all
plagiarism.
• Myth 6: I won’t get caught if I plagiarize.
• WRONG! Plagiarism is quite obvious to most professors,
and many of them use plagiarism detecting software.
Resources to Help you Avoid
Plagiarism
• P. 451-456of Rules for Writers for avoiding plagiarism.
P. 458-459 for a directory of MLA citation information.
P. 479-523 for MLA references. P. 523-532 for example
research paper.
• Online plagiarism tutorial and quizzes from Simon
Fraser University http://www.lib.sfu.ca/node/10442
• Plagiarism Self Test from Western Carolina University
http://www.wcu.edu/12083.asp
• University of Southern Mississippi’s Plagiarism Tutorial
http://www.lib.usm.edu/legacy/plag/plagiarismtutorial
.php
How to Use TurnItIn to Check for
Plagiarism
• After you have uploaded your essay to turnitin,
you will have the ability to check YOURSELF for
any plagiarism.
• Your originality score should be less than 25%.
This means that no more than 25% of your essay
should be identified as word for word from a
source, even if sources are quoted correctly.
• Any portions of your essay that turnitin highlights
should be enclosed in quotes and given a correct
MLA parenthetical citation.
What Happens if TurnItIn Finds
Plagiarism?
• If you have time before the due date, you can
fix the problem and upload a new, corrected
file that will replace the old one.
• This means that it would be a good idea to
give yourself time to correct any errors before
the due date.
• If you discover accidental plagiarism after the
due date, I will give you the opportunity to
revise.
What about intentional plagiarism?
• Intentional plagiarism is cheating that is not the result
of an accident, a lack of knowledge, or a citation error.
For example, uploading an entire essay you bought or
copied from a website is not an accident.
• What happens if turnitin identifies intentional
plagiarism?
– Hope you’ve given yourself enough time to take it down
and upload something you actually wrote before the due
date.
– Because if I catch you, I will fail you on the assignment with
no hope of revision so fast it’ll make your head spin.